Do you even hear about underground organisation of teenagers in Ukraine city Krasnodon during the german occupation 1942-43?
This is amazing tragical story that was that was teached in soviet school was based on the real events.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Guard_%28Soviet_resistance%29

The Young Guard was an underground anti-fascist Komsomol organization, in the Nazi-occupied Soviet city of Krasnodon (Ukrainian SSR, now Luhansk Oblast of Ukraine). They were active during the Great Patriotic War until January 1943. They carried out several acts of sabotage and protest before being betrayed to the Nazis. Most members of the Young Guard, about 80 people, were tortured and then executed by the Germans.

The Young Guard was established soon after Krasnodon was occupied by Nazi Germany on July 20, 1942. Several youth groups almagamated, calling themeselves the Young Guard. One of the first meetings of the organization was held on October 2 of the same year.

The organization was led by the local Communist Party underground of Krasnodon, headed by Philipp Lyutikov. Lyutikov was the former head of the parents' committee of the 4th secondary school of Krasnodon, where many members of the organization had studied. There is some controversy concerning the leadership of the Young Guard. It is widely accepted that the commander was Ivan Turkenich and the commissar was Oleg Koshevoy, but recent sources claim that the leaders were other members of the Staff of the Young Guard, namely Viktor Tretyakevich, Sergei Tyulenin and Ivan Zemnukhov.

There were about 100 members of the Young Guard, all young boys and girls - workers, 8th-10th form schoolboys and schoolgirls from Krasnodon and surrounding villages and settlements. Due to the secret nature of the Young Guard, only people well-known to other organization members, and who took the special oath of faithfulness, could become members. Most of them either belonged to the Komsomol or were accepted into Komsomol upon joining the Young Guard. 15 were members of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The most active members and founders of the organization made up the Staff of the Young Guard: Ulyana Gromova, Oleg Koshevoy, Vasily Levashov, Lyubov Shevtsova, Viktor Tretyakevich, Ivan Turkenich, Sergei Tyulenin, and Ivan Zemnukhov.

Activities
Among the main activities of the organization were

the release of 70 prisoners from the Nazi concentration camp on November 15, 1942 (20 more people were released from the hospital of the camp)
the arson of the Nazi Labour Exchange of Krasnodon on December 6, 1942. A list of about 2,000 citizens of Krasnodon, who were intended for the deportation into the Nazi Germany were burnt
eight Flags of the Soviet Union were hung out on highest buildings of Krasnodon on November 6 and November 7, 1942 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution
about 5,000 anti-fascist leaflets were issued and spread in Krasnodon during the existence of the organization
Members of the organization also destroyed motor vehicles, ammunition and enemy fuel supplies. Jointly with the Communist Party underground of Krasnodon the Young Guard prepared for an anti-fascist armed rebellion, but a treachery within the organization and the betrayal of the organization to the Nazis stopped these preparations.
Treachery and execution
The Nazis knew about the existence of the underground and tried to discover its membership. Finally they succeeded in this, helped by treachery within the organization. Massive arrests began on January 5 and lasted until January 11, 1943. Just 11 members managed to evade their pursuers. All the arrested people were tortured. 71 of them, along with members of the Communist Party underground (including its head Philipp Lyutikov), many alive, were thrown into the pit of Coal Mine Number 5 (53 meters in depth), on January 15, January 16 and January 31, 1943. Oleg Koshevoy, Lyubov Shevtsova, Viktor Subbotin, Dmitry Ogurtsov, Sergei Ostapenkov were shot on February 9, 1943 in the town park of the town Rovenki. Just five days later, on February 14, 1943 Krasnodon was liberated by the Red Army.

In the soviet time Young Guard were heroised for the political purposes.
However even without the soviet propoganda the Yang Guard existence is one of the amazing thing of the WW2.
The about 100 16-17 years teenagers were consciously ready to die for the strugle agains fascists.
The interesting site with manies photos and tells is here.
http://molodguard.narod.ru/photos.htm
Today some of the neo-nationalists in Ukraine try to re-write the story of the Yang Guard.
Actually the soviet story canonized story has a lack and mistakes.
However the some of hot head among the Ukraine nationalist try to present the Yang Guard as the Ukraine Nationalists Organistation!!!!!( It's not trouble for them that the most of the young guard activists had the Russian families) . Those nationalist idiots do not disturb this fact.
They do not need the facts - they need the motives for the political identification, right mst Kato:)

Kato

10-08-2007, 12:04 PM

Posted by Chevan

Today some of the neo-nationalists in Ukraine try to re-write the story of the Yang Guard.
Actually the soviet story canonized story has a lack and mistakes.
However the some of hot head among the Ukraine nationalist try to present the Yang Guard as the Ukraine Nationalists Organistation!!!!!( It's not trouble for them that the most of the young guard activists had the Russian families) . Those nationalist idiots do not disturb this fact.
They do not need the facts - they need the motives for the political identification, right mst Kato

There are documented reports from the local network of the Organistation of Ukrainian Nationalists in Donbas to the central leadership that concerns the Young Guard. These documents testifies that the local OUN knew a lot about Young Guard's activities. There were even personal meetings between nationalists and Young Guards. However, the nationalists came to a concusion that this group of teenagers wasn't an independent formation and was fully subject and manipulated by some older "comarades" outside the Young Guard.

Chevan

10-09-2007, 08:51 AM

There are documented reports from the local network of the Organistation of Ukrainian Nationalists in Donbas to the central leadership that concerns the Young Guard. These documents testifies that the local OUN knew a lot about Young Guard's activities. There were even personal meetings between nationalists and Young Guards. However, the nationalists came to a concusion that this group of teenagers wasn't an independent formation and was fully subject and manipulated by some older "comarades" outside the Young Guard.

Well sure they had interacted with the soviet command- this is OBVIOUS way if you want to fight with germans. ( this is not the killing unarmed poles , right:)).
However i want to note the very interesting moment - WAS IT RIGHT to organize the teenagers undergraund organisation - this was a mortally danger think.
Those childrens made a few mostly propogandic action( althought they once even blow up the Germans car in a bridge).
I do not think that the damage was serious - at least it is not equal for the lives of the 71 CHILDRENS.
In this last period of Nazy occupation - the Germans GESTAPO bastards lost any human face- now they did not care about oppinion of local population. Only the terror.
This is one of the very interesting question - did those bastards think what do future wait for the Germany in 1945?

They mass killed the children for the Soviet flag in roof, realising the pows and soviet propoganda?
Somebody could say that they were the partisans - they were out of the law of war.Well may be they were injurious for the Germans- but what sence was to kill them all befor the Nazy retreating from Ukraine?It was ORDER? May be.
So i think they would not against the mass raping of woman and violence in the Germany in 1945- they so like to shoot the children in Ukraine in 1943:)
The most amazing thing in Younf Guard for me is -- the great spirit of the children. They all were the voluntaries, and they action proved - this was not a GAME for them. They really understood the danger of the thier organisation. After betraing they were catched practically all - except the dozen who were covered and hidden.